Apparatus for storing and handling logs



Aw. A. WHITCOMB. APPARATUS FDR STORING AND HANDLING LOGS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 24v I9I9.

Patented May 31, III-2L,

4 SHEETS-SHEET l.

W. A. WHITCOMB.

APPARATUS FOR sToRING AND HANDLING Loss.

APPLICATION FILED OCT- 24, ISIS.

Patented May 31, 1921.

W. A. WHITCOMB. APPARATUS FOR STOHING AND HANDLING LOGS.

Patented May 31, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3- APPLICATloN FILED ocT.'24. 1919.

W. A. WHITCOVIB. APPARATUS FOR STORING AND HANDLING LOGS.

APPLlC-ATXON FILED 0CT.24, 1919. l

Patented May 31, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNTED STATES WILLIAM: A. WHITCOMB, OF MILLINOCKET, MAINE.

APPARATUS FOR STORING AND HANDLING LOGS.

Laeaeeo.

Specicaton of Letters Patent.

PatentedMay e1, 1921.

Application filed October 24, 1919. Serial No. 332,898.

T 0 all whom t may Concern.'

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. VVHIT- come, a citizen of the United States, residing at Millinoclret, in the county of Penobscot and State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Apparatus for Storing and Handling Logs, of which the following` is a specification.

This invention pertains to an improved apparatus for storing and handling` logs, whereby they may be piled in bulk and thereafter removed when it is desired to use the same. More specifically, the invention relates to an apparatus whereby pulp wood, in log forni, may be piled up for storage in summer and reclaimed therefrom in winter for use in making paper pulp.

The apparatus shown in the annexed drawings is capable of piling from 35,00() to 40,000 cords at a rate of substantially 750 cords per day (24 hour day), the construction being such that when the wood is piled it may be withdrawn from the bottom of the pile and transferred by the same conveyer which piled it to a transfer mechanism or other conveyer which leads to the mill.

Broadly stated, the invention may be said to comprise two main towers separated a considerable distance apart, (say 400 feet), a tunnel provided with removable covers extending between and beyond each of the towers, an inclined runway extending from a sluice or other log conveying means to the upper portion of one tower, and an endless conveyer `which passes up the runway to apoint adjacent the upper end of onetower, thence across to the other tower, downwardly therein and to a suitable driving means, thence through the tunnel and back to the point where the logs are fed to the runway.

In operation, the logs are automatically carried up the runway and are discharged from the endless conveyor and drop adjacent the tower which is nextV to the runway, the logs forming a cone shaped pile, which pile when Vit reaches a height equal to the elevation of the horizontal upper stretch of the cable, forms a support for the logs which are carried along the top of the pile and dropped so that the pile is gradually built up between the two towers. In order to `facilitate the passage of the conveyer and the logs along the pile, I preferably bottom of the pile to a suitable conveying f mechanism which transfers them to the mill or other point. Reversal of travel is not necessary if the mill and source of supply are at the same end of the tunnel or structure. y

A preferred form of apparatus is shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein,-

Figure 1 is a sideelevation of the apparatus;

Fig. 2 an enlarged vertical sectional view showing the lower end of the runway, the sluice which is located in proximity thereto, and the conveyer cablewith the sprocket wheel about which it passes at that point;

Fig. 3 a detail plan view of the means employed for applying the necessary tension to the cable;

Fig. 4 an enlarged vertical sectional view, broken away, of one of the intermediate supporting towers or columns for the run- Way;

F ig. 5 a vertical sectional view taken on the line V-V of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 a transverse vertical sectional view taken on the line VI-VI of Fig. 4;

Fig.r 7 a vertical sectionalr view, partly broken away, with the two main towers and the underlying tunnel;

Fig. 8 a vertical sectional view showing the temporary support or guideway employed for the conveyer cable and the logs fed forward thereby upon the top of the pile of logs as the same .builds up between the two main supporting towers;

Fig. 9 a perspective view of a section of such guideway;

Fig. 10 a detailed vertical sectional view on an enlarged scale showing a portion of the tunnel and the guideway for the cable; and Fig. 1l a transverse vertical sectional view taken on the line VXL- XI of Fig. l0',

Referring to the drawings, 1 and 2 indicate the main towers which will be of substantial height and which, in practice, have been made 120 feet. Said towers are connected at their tops by a wire cable 3 and are backwstayed by similar cables 1i and To the right of the tower 1 there is provided a series of columns or towers, denoted by (3, 7 and 8, the towers successively decreasing in height from the main column 1, as clearly indicated in Fig. 1. Said towers form the support for beams or girders 9, said beams being secured to the upper portion of the various towers G, 7 and 8, and likewise at their upper end secured to the tower l.

At the lower end the beams find a bearing and support in a masonry foundation '10, best shown in F ig. 2. The beamsci) form the support for a runway 11, which is preferably V-shaped or concave in forni (see l5 5) and provided with wear plates l2. footway or platform 13 extends alongl the side of the runway (see Fig. o) and a rail 11i is provided so that an attendant may readily walk along the Vfootway or platform when occasion requires. The foundation l() also forms as here shown the support for one end of a sluiceway, denoted by 15, through which the logs pass into line with the lower end of the runway. A series of rollers 16 A i. L

4are provided so as to facilitate the movement of the logs by an attendant and through the sluice into and between guide plates 17 located at the lower end ofthe runway. The foundationV 10 is provided with a pair of tracks 18 which preferably stand at the same inclination asthe runway 11 and a truck i9 is mounted upon said tracks. The truck is held in its adjusted position upon the track by means of threaded rods 2O which at their lower ends are anchored into a suitable foundation, the rods at their upper ends passing through the lower cross elements of the truck and have threaded thereon nuts 2l.which are interconnected by a sprocket chain 22 or other suitable mechanism so that they may be si multaneously adjusted to move the same upwardly or downwardly along the tracks 18. Said truck forms the support or bearing for the sprocket wheel 23 about which passes a wire cable 24 provided with a series of buttonsror locking members 25 adapted to engage the logs as they are dropped into the Y runway and move the same upwardly along said way, The cable 24F. as it leaves the upper end of the runway passes over a similar sprocket wheel 26 mounted in the tower 1,

thence across to the tower 2 and over a sprocket wheel 27 mounted in said tower 2. thence downwardly through said tower and about the sprocket wheel 28 located at the bottom of said tower, and thence laterally in the tunnel about a drive sprocket 29 and thence in reverse direction through the tunnel back to the sprocket 23. By the arrangement above set forth in connection with the truck it may be adjusted so as to place the cable under proper tension.

The tunnel is denoted generally by 30 and would preferably be formed of suitable reinforced concrete or masonry. lt entends from the tower 2 and beneath tower 1 and to a point in alinement with the tower or column 7 rl`hat portion of the tunnel which lies between the towers l and 2 is substan tially level and as it leaves the tower 1 may be given a slight upward inclination toward the tower 'i'. At the right of the tower 7 the floor of the tunnel is continued beneath the tower 8 and to the foundation element 10, as denoted by 31. To the left of the tower 2 the tunnel extends to the sheave sprocket 29 and a conveyer trough 33 (Fig. 1) is provided at the end of such tunnel extension and preferably adjacent the driving element '29 in order that the logs as they are removed from the tunnel may be transferred to the niill or any other desired point.

The upper face of the main portion of the tunnel is preferably rabbeted or cutaway adjacent each edge in order to form a bearing for the covering of the tunnel which will preferably be formed of logs 34 eX- tending transversely of the tunnel, the logs aifording a covering which is at once strong and which maybe readily positioned and removed as occasion requires.

ris thelog pile builds up and begins to extend from the tower l toward the tower 2, it is found desirable to provide a temporary lsupport or guideway for the cable and the logs which are moved forwardly thereby. Such construction 'is best shown in Figs. 8 and 9 wherein it will be seen that there is provided a trough shaped member composed of cross supports or base pieces 35 having secured thereto three boards or timbers 36, 37 and 38, the two latter being arranged at an angle to the base board 36 so as to form a trough shaped structure. Metallic wear plates 39 are secured to Vsaid. boa-rds and extend outwardly beyond the boards at one end by stoppingshort at the opposite end. Such trough shaped elements may be secured to each other from time to time and the guideway thus extended out over the pile as it grows toward tower 2.

It will be seen upon reference to. Figs. 7 and 8 that there is provided at the upper end of the tower l adjacent the sheave or sprocket 26, sideplates 32 which form extensions of the runway and cause proper delivery of the logs. Said plates likewise cooperate with the extensible trough elements just referredto as the same are built outwardly Vover the top of the pile. A Vdeflect/or plate 32@ will likewise preferably be provided for the logs adjacent the sheave 2G so as to deflect them slightly from the tower 1.

While ordinarily the logs will be removed through the tunnel by a reversal of the travel of the cable or rope 24C, means is provided whereby the upper stretch ot the cable may be taken down and the cable caused to pass directly about the sprocket sheaves and 29 without passing around. the other sheaves at all. inasmuch as only one run or stretch of the cable should be present in the tunnel proper, as a second run would interfere with the withdrawal of the logs through the tunnel, there is provided at one side of the tunnel a pocket or way 4:0, best shown in Fig. 1l. liihe pocket is closed by a series of gravitating doors el, and as the pocket leaves the tunnel propel', or that portion which is between the towers 2 and 7, it is continued in an uipward direction, as shown in Figs. l and 6. By threadii'ig the cable through such pocket and allowing the other run to lie in the bottom of the tunnel, it will be readily seen that the passage oi the logs through the tunnel, by reason of engagement of the buttons 25 with the logs as they drop into the tunnel, will not be interfered with by the opposite run of the cable. j

From the 'foregoing it will be seen that the logs may be readily piled and lett in bulk storage and be removed as occasion may require. Such removal may be effected by reversing` the drive oie the cable, the cover logs 34 being removed adjacent the tower 2 so that the logs from the pile may drop into the tunnel. Such cover logs will be successively moved as the pile shortens up between the towers until the entire pile has been transported log by log. Those logs which will not run into the tunnel trom the pile may be shoved or pushed thereinto by the workman and thus shifted to the transfer member 33.

W'hat is claimed is:

l. ln an apparatus of the character specified, the combination oit a pair o'l' spaced towers; an inclined runway extending` upwardly toward the upper portion of one of' said towers; a tunnel extending from one of said towers to the other; and conveyer means extending; through the tunnel, up the runway, across from one tower to the other, and back to the tunnel.

ln an apparatus of the character specifled, the combination or a pair of spaced towers; an inclined runway extending, upwardly toward the upper portion of one of said towers; a tunnel extending from one et said towers to the other; a removable cover therefor; and conveyor means extending through the tunnel, up the runway, across from one tower to the other, and back t the tunnel.

3. In an apparatus ot the character specilied, the combination of a pair of spaced towers; an inclined. runway extending upwardly toward the upper portion of one oft said towers; a tunnel extending trom one oit said towers to the other; a sectional removable cover thereifor; and conveyer means eX- tending,` through the tunnel, up the runway, across from one tower to the other, and back to the tunnel.

4i. ln an apparatus of the character specified, the combination of a pair of spaced towers oi a material height; an inclined runway extending downwardly and outwardly from one ci' said towers from a point near its upper end; a tunnel extending beneath and intermediate said towers; an endless cable extending up the runway, spanning` the space between the towers, thence passing` downwardly to the tunnel, and through the same to the lower end of the runway; means for driving the cable; and means carried by thve cable for engaging logs.

5. in an apparatus of' 'the character specified, the combination ci? a pair of spaced towers of a material height; an endless cable extendingfrom one tower to the other from points adjacent their upper ends; means carriedby the cable for engaging logs; means located to one side of one of said towers and coperating with the cable to elevate logs;

vineans forY driving` the cable; and an extensible guideway for the cable and logs adapted for placement on the piled logs when the same reach the cable span extending between the towers.

G. ln an apparatus et the character specified, the combination of a pair of high, spaced towers; a tunnel extending to each side of, beneath and intermediate the towers; an inclined runway extending` from an elevated point. on one ot said towers downwardly and to one side et the same; an endless driven cablc passing about sprocket sheaves located at the lower and upper ends ofthe runway, thence over a sprocket carried by the oppositely disposed tower, thence over a sprocket at the base of said tower, thence over and about a sprocket located at the end of the tunnel remote from the runway, and back through the tunnel to the first named sprocket; and means carried by the cable for engaging logs.

7. In an apparatus of the character speciiied, the combination of a pair of spaced towers; an inclined runway extending' downwardly and outwardly from one of said towers from a point near its upper end; a tunnel extending beneath and intermediate said towers; a pocket extending; along one yside oi the tunnel; means for laterally closing said pocket; an endless cable extending up the runway and spanning; the space be'- tween the towers, thence passing downwardly to the tunnel; and through the same to the lower end of the runway; means for driving the cable; and means carried by the cable for engaging logs, the pocket being provided for the purpose of taking care of one run of the cable when it is removed from the towers in the act of removing logs through the tunnel which have been previously piled thereon.

8. In an apparatus of the character specied, the combination of a pair of spaced towers of a material height; a foundation member located to one side of one of said towers; a plurality of towers of gradually increasing height located between said foundation member and the tower just mentioned; an inclined runway extending from said last mentioned tower to the foundation member and supported by the intermediate towers; a tunnel extending from a point beneath the runway and beneath the pair of spaced towers and to a point beyond the second of said towers; a sprocket sheave mounted on the foundation member; a sprocket wheel mounted adjacent the upper end of the first of said pair of towers; a similar sprocket mounted in the opposite spaced tower; a sprocket mounted at the lower end of said last named tower; a driving sprocket located at that end of the tunnel remote from the foundation member; a cable passing about said sprockets and through the tunnel whereby a span is formed between the pair of spaced towers; and means carried by the cable for engaging logs.

9. In an apparatus of the character specified, the combination of a pair of spaced towers of a material height; a foundation member located to one side of one of said towers; a plurality of towers of gradually increasing height .located between said foundation member and the tower just mentioned; an inclined runway extending from said last mentioned tower to the foundation member and supported by the intermediate towers; a tunnel extending from a point beneath the runway and beneath the pair of spaced towers and to a point beyond the second of said towers; a sprocket sheave mounted on the foundation member; a sprocket wheel mounted adjacent the upper end of the first of said pair of towers; a sprocket mounted at the lower end of said last named tower; a sprocket located at that end of the tunnel remote from the foundation member; a cable passing about said sprockets and through the tunnel whereby a span is formed between the pair of spaced towers; means carried by the cable for engaging logs; and means for presenting logs to the lower end of the runway.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

WILLIAM A. 'WHITCOMB 

